Those who rebel win! These four rebels show us how it’s done.

Rebels change the world. It’s not just the Spanish car brand CUPRA that embodies this ethos – time and again, it’s also people who achieve extraordinary things. Not because they make a big fuss, but because they consistently go their own way: creatively, independently, rebelliously. Together with ServusTV presenter and CUPRA brand ambassador Andrea Schlager, we set out in search of individuals who stray from the beaten track and demonstrate that progress arises where conventions are challenged. They include the artist and former footballer Wolfgang Mair, alias Kowalski; downhill world champion Vali Höll; master baker and Supermoto world champion Lukas Höllbacher; and scalaria founder Peter Gastberger. Their paths could hardly be more different – and yet they are united by the courage to challenge expectations, push boundaries and, above all, remain true to themselves.

Wolfgang Mair – from the football pitch to the canvas

Wolfgang Mair actually wanted to become an interior designer. Instead, he became a professional footballer – for 16 years. Nevertheless, he always painted, often straight after matches, to process what he had experienced. After retiring from the game, he started all over again: training in graphic design, no safety net, no manager. Today he is known as the artist Kowalski – and consistently follows his own path.

If someone says that’s the way it has to be, then it’s really hard for me to just go along with it. I always feel the urge to prove that there’s another way.

Wolfgang Mair, alias Kowalski

Resistance has never held him back; rather, it has driven him on. Even as a teenager, he didn’t take much notice of authority figures, and the same holds true today: if someone tells him something can’t be done, it usually only serves to spur him on all the more to prove the opposite. Perfection was never the goal for him – “f inding your own path and how you develop is far more important,” he says of his journey from professional sport to art.

Vali Höll – World Champion in a male-dominated sport

Vali Höll is a multiple downhill mountain bike world champion – in a sport that was long dominated by men. Her motivation was never just her own success: she wanted to highlight that women also compete, and to witness how the image of her sport is changing. As a little girl, she wrote on a piece of paper that she wanted to become a world champion one day – she would never have believed back then that she would achieve this goal so quickly.

In downhill mountain biking, you always feel a bit like a rebel – but one who shows respect: for the walkers, for the forest, for the environment.

Vali Höll

Today, she consciously continues to build on the role she has carved out for herself: through her own small projects, she wants to give something back – and encourage children to spend more time outdoors rather than on their mobiles. For her, the fear of losing is also part of the experience – she doesn’t let it paralyse her, but uses it as a driving force. A privilege, as she herself says: “Anyone who’s afraid of losing is usually pretty good at what they do”.

Lukas Höllbacher – a baker with racing in his blood

Lukas Höllbacher has been living in two worlds for twenty years: as the 2025 Supermoto World Champion, he is at the very top of his sport. The next morning, he’s back where he’s been at home since childhood – in the bakery of the family business. He admits that a career in motor racing was never the most obvious choice: “Rationally speaking, Supermoto certainly wasn’t the best path. But my passion and love for the sport simply drove me forward.”

I’m a rebel – ever since I was a child. But in a positive sense: for me, there’s nothing negative about it; rather, it’s something that helps you grow.

Lukas Höllbacher

Above all, it was the family bond that carried him through. The bakery has been part of his identity since childhood, whilst his mother introduced him to motor sport at an early age. What at first glance seems like a contradiction has long been a natural fit for Höllbacher: sport and craftsmanship are two sides of the same passion – and both demand precision, perseverance and the will to keep improving.

Peter Gastberger – the visionary from Lake Wolfgang

In 1998, Peter Gastberger made a decision that would fundamentally transform his family’s hotel business: he closed the traditional hotel operations at the former Eibenstein Castle, which had been in the family’s possession since 1951. Instead of continuing to run the castle hotel, he embraced a vision for which there were hardly any precedents at the time: an event hotel specialising in functions. “You have to be in love with success, ” says Gastberger of the mindset that drove him back then. The former Romantik Hotel first became the ‘Schloss am Wolfgangsee’, and from 2000 onwards, the scalaria. Today, the event resort is internationally renowned and hosts major events – including the Living Legends of Aviation Europe Awards, at which John Travolta and Morgan Freeman, amongst others, appeared as hosts.

I’m an entrepreneur through and through – when someone says ‘no’, that’s when I really get going!

Peter Gastberger

Art also plays a central role for Gastberger – some of the paintings in the building are his own. His motto: to surprise, to inspire, to amaze. This ethos continues to shape the scalaria to this day – as a venue for extraordinary productions and as a project that Gastberger is constantly developing further.

Four worlds – one driving force

Wolfgang Mair lives out his passion through art, Vali Höll on the trail, Lukas Höllbacher in motorsport, and Peter Gastberger through his vision for an entire town. What unites them is the courage to forge their own path – even in the face of opposition. This is exactly what CUPRA stands for: driven by emotion and experience.

The new CUPRA Raval – electric, sporty, rebellious

Compact, fully electric and packed with performance: the new CUPRA Raval combines striking design with sporty driving dynamics and modern technology.

• Striking design: sporty lines, 3D Infinity rear lights and an illuminated CUPRA logo.

• Impressive performance: Up to 226 PS (166 kW) and 0–100 km/h in 6.8 seconds.

• Range & charging: Up to 446 km range; DC charging from 10 to 80 per cent in around 24 minutes.

• Plenty of space: Compact dimensions, five seats and up to 441 litres of boot space.

• Modern technology: 12 .9-inch touchscreen and intelligent driver assistance systems such as Travel Assist and Front Assist.

Win a rebellious experience

Tell us what drives you, and with a bit of luck, win an exclusive experience with the new CUPRA Raval – including a flight with the Flying Bulls and an overnight stay at TAUROA’s winter retreat.

ENTER AND WIN!

CUPRA Raval

Foto: CUPRA

Winterstellgut von TAUROA

Foto: TAUROA

The Flying Bulls Helikopter

Foto: The Flying Bulls

CUPRA Raval

© CUPRA